FEEDING REGIMEN EFFECTS ON HYBRID CATFISH

What is it about?

In commercial catfish production, harvest delays can occur when there is off-flavor, oversupply of fish in the market, or low fish prices. Delays in harvest increase risk of fish losses and restrict cash flow resulting in diminished production efficiency. Also, large fish exceeding optimal harvest size begin to convert feed less efficiently, and more importantly, will decrease in value if they surpass a specified maximum size limit for processing. The present study examined effects of no feeding, maintenance feeding (feeding once weekly), and refeeding on production and processing characteristics and on fillet proximate composition of market-size hybrid catfish.

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Why is it important?

Harvest delays can become a serious issue especially for hybrid catfish because they feed more aggressively and grow faster than channel catfish. The development of proper feeding management to maintain body weight once fish reach market size is needed to minimize economic losses associated with harvest delays. Our results demonstrate that feeding once weekly can generally maintain hybrid catfish body weight with little gain or loss. No feeding or feeding once weekly for 2 months does not affect survival, but significantly reduces fillet yield. After 1 month of daily refeeding, there were no significant differences in production and processing characteristics whether fish were previously not fed or fed once weekly. One month of full feeding following no feeding or maintenance feeding improves fillet yield relative to values before refeeding. These data provide catfish producers with information that can be used to minimize production losses in events of long-term harvest delays.